Buyback turnouts disappoint police
Police are urging gun owners to hand in their prohibited weapons in time, following low turnouts at buyback events in the Tasman Police District.
Tasman police firearms programme lead Detective Inspector Paul Borrell said that so far, slightly more than 2500 firearms had been collected at buyback events across the district, which comprises Nelson, Marlborough and the West Coast.
Borrell said that while attendances had been high at the initial collection events, starting in August, there had been a dropoff in recent weeks.
‘‘We ran three events on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, and it would be fair to say we were a bit disappointed around the turnout. I would have expected not a huge amount more, but more than what we’re getting.
‘‘The concern is when we set up these [events], the attendances were really good, with 70 or 80 people
‘‘We don’t want people to leave it too late . . . I would hate to see good, law-abiding people being caught out.’’
Detective Inspector Paul Borrell,
Tasman police
turning up, with 140 or 150 firearms being handed over.’’
Borrell said that with the amnesty ending on December 20, there was a limited window for owners of prohibited weapons and parts to hand them in.
‘‘We don’t want people to leave it too late. If you miss the date, you miss out on compensation, and there’s a risk of prosecution. But most importantly for those people, it’s around the risk of losing their firearm licence.
‘‘We’ve got passionate hunters, recreational shooters, pistol club and rifle range members in Tasman, and I would hate to see good, lawabiding people being caught out by not understanding the limits we have.’’
There will be a further 23 gun collection events across Nelson, Marlborough and the West Coast, with the final event being held in Nelson on December 20.
Borrell said firearms owners should bring their guns to the collection events, rather than taking them straight to their local police station.
He said pickups could be arranged for people with 10 or more prohibited guns, and potentially for people who were unable to bring their weapons in due to illness or other reasons.
Police Deputy Commissioner
Mike Clement said that as of October 31, just over 32,000 firearms had been handed in throughout the country.
Clement said that for those people who had yet to hand in their prohibited weapons, the time to do so was now. With the number of options available, there were ‘‘no excuses’’ to not comply with the law.